Author Nicholas A. Basbanes discusses the remarkable relationship of the celebrated 19th-century poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and his wife, Frances Appleton Longfellow, the focus of his recent biography of the couple, Cross of Snow, which is set largely in Boston and Cambridge during the tumultuous years leading up to the Civil War. The couple’s marriage in 1843 represented a melding of two highly gifted and principled people whose shared values and deeply held convictions found expression and purpose in manifold ways, not least of which was the influence Fanny brought to bear on Henry’s creative process, serving, in her words, as “a pretty active spur upon his Pegasus.” Revered in his time as a “poet of the people,” Longfellow’s works were translated into more than 30 languages, memorized by millions of people, with lines that resonate to this day.
Henry and Fanny Longfellow: An American Love Story of Uncommon Consequence
With Nicholas A. Basbanes
National Endowment for the Humanities Public Scholar
Wednesday, February 24, 2021
Time: 7:00pm-8:30pm
Upcoming Featured Events
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Lanterns & Luminaries
Join us for an evening of inspiration and celebration at Boston’s Old North Church with Third Lantern Award honoree Keith Lockhart.
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Join us on April 16 at 7pm for Lanterns & Luminaries: a special evening at the historic Old North Church celebrating the anniversary of Paul Revere’s famous “two if by sea” lantern signal in April of 1775. Keith Lockhart, conductor of the Boston Pops Orchestra, will accept the Third Lantern Award, which is presented annually to an individual who embodies the values symbolized in Old North’s iconic signal lanterns. The program will include festive music, a dramatic reading of “Paul Revere’s Ride,” the presentation of the Third Lantern Award, and an inspiring keynote address from Mr. Lockhart.
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Lantern Service 2026
The Old North Church Congregation is pleased to offer a traditional Lantern Service with special guest The Rt. Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde, Episcopal Bishop of Washington.
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Join Old North Church’s congregation on April 17 at 7pm for a ceremony inspired by the service held at the start of America’s Bicentennial celebrations in 1975 with President Gerald Ford. The Lantern Service recalls the lights of liberty that shone from Old North’s steeple on April 18, 1775, while reflecting on the meaning of faith, freedom, and American democracy today. Inspirational music, Paul Revere’s own recollection of his historic ride, Bishop Budde’s address, and prayers for our nation will lead us into America’s Semiquincentennial.
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Boston Resistance Then & Now
How did Boston spark the American Revolution? How can we once again lead the country toward liberty? Join us on April 22 for the launch of Silence Dogood’s Precedented Times Town Hall Series.
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Boston Resistance Then & Now
Join us on April 22, 2026, from 6:30 – 8:00pm at the Old North Church for the launch of the Silence Dogood Project’s Precedented Times Town Hall Series. Supported by Mass Humanities’ Promises of the Revolution initiative, this new series builds on the Silence Dogood Project’s projection-based storytelling to create spaces for live civic dialogue — rooted in Boston’s deep tradition of public dissent and collective action.